Gerrard: We're not worried about penalties

Gerrard nearly became the first man to net a hat-trick of penalties in the Premier League this season.

Credit: PA

England captain Steven Gerrard insists the team will not become obsessed by the prospect of another World Cup penalty shoot-out.

Exiting six of their last 10 major tournaments on penalties means there is an undercurrent of trepidation that Gerrard understands.
The defeat to West Germany in the 1990 World Cup semi-finals began a nightmare run of spot-kick defeats that last struck at Euro 2012.

Gerrard netted two years ago as England exited to Italy, but six years earlier the England skipper saw his penalty saved in the World Cup quarter-final exit to Portugal.

"It's difficult to describe what it is like," Gerrard told BBC Radio 5 Live. "Unfortunately for me I failed in that situation when I took a penalty in a World Cup environment and it was a difficult atmosphere to be in.

"I learnt my lessons from that and a couple of years ago I scored the penalty I was asked to take.

"We are going to practise penalties a lot but it is a difficult situation to put into words and describe it. There is a lot of pressure.

"You have an awful lot more time to think about your penalty and what is at stake is a lot bigger and it is a pressure situation.

"A penalty shoot-out is a more pressurised situation than any one penalty in a league game."

England last won a penalty shoot-out at a major tournament during Euro 96 but the current squad have been working hard to prepare for the situation occurring in Brazil.

Roy Hodgson has brought sports psychiatrist Dr Steve Peters away with the team and the players have been working hard in training to avoid such issues this summer.

"I can understand the fixation because we have failed in quite a few shoot-outs but I would say don't get carried away with it because it might never come about," Gerrard added.

"As players hopefully we perform well enough in 90 minutes or 120 minutes to prevent it going to a shoot-out. But we will be ready for a shoot-out if it comes around."